YoungMan

Unfortunately yes. A college martial arts class tends to attract a different type of student than, say, a private class or YMCA class. Through personal experience, they just don't take it seriously and consider it more of a social occasion. However, I still think the Instructor needs to set ground rules for acceptable social behavior. It is one thing if relationships happen. It is quite another if the Instructor outright condones them. Maybe "don't ask, don't tell" might work.

And this is why organizations and governing bodies serve a purpose-so that some clown with no real credibility is giving his students black belts that really mean nothing. Or some guy isn't making up his own style and calling himself a black belt. This why high schools are accredited-so that when you graduate, your diploma is recognized everywhere. The fact that you may have some skills does not mean you are a black belt. A black belt is a rank you earn from a credible Instructor and governing body. Otherwise anyone could have one.

What happened was that in the environment of pure stretching, such as warming up before practice, the gymnast/martial artist was in his element. However, when it came time to do basic kicking, his mind just couldn't make the changeover. You'd think a professional gymnast of all people would be able to high kick with ease, but it's not always the case.

To a point. Being able to kick high is as much a result of relaxing your body and your mind as anything. In fact, years ago our GM brought in a practioner of another style who was also a professional gymnast. This guy could do cold splits no problem. However, when it came time to do high kicking, he could barely get his leg head high. The ability to do splits is only one factor in helping with kicking.

I think age plays a big part of it. A forty year old man, even if his technique is not the greatest, will be taken more seriously than a 15 year old with good technique. I've read about 15 year olds teaching classes, and I just cannot accept that. A teenager, by virtue of his age and immaturity, is simply in no position to lead a class with all that entails.

By definition, you are not a black belt if all you do is put some moves together and call it your own personal style. You may be skilled in your own right, the same way someone may be skilled in teaching themselves music or english. However, you are a black belt when a legitimate Instructor and/or organization deems you worthy, through accredited testing, of being a black belt. Until that happens, you may or may not be a skilled practitioner but you are not a black belt. Otherwise, anyone and his brother could call themselves a black belt.

A couple coming in together is different. Their relationship has already been established. Not that different than couples who take up running or another sport together. The problem I have is when students date people they meet in class. You are not there to date other students. The martial arts atmospere is very different than any other physical activity, requiring a focus that other sports simply don't require.

One of our Instructors considered his classes to be his own personal dating pool. Last time I checked, he was on his 3rd divorce. Nuff said. I think any Instructor with any credibility will enforce a "no dating" rule for class. It just lowers the professionalism to allow students to date, and takes away the concentration you need. How can you be professional and maintain concentration when you're thinking about what you and the girl across from you are going to do after class? I know emotions happen, but you just have to put emotions aside and be professional. Persoanlly, I looked at women in class like sisters-it just didn't feel right to want to date them. What you do is, you take the lessons you learn in class about socializing and apply them out of class. There are six billion people in the world. Why do you need to focus on the women in your class?

Anyway, I'm not a big fan of intricate 4-5 step self defense routines like you see in magazines. Takes too long and hard to remember. I am a fan of being aware of distances, angles, physical build, height differential etc., and using that as a guide to what may work in a given situation. I also, unlike some some people, don't automatically assume that joint locking, throws, and ground work will be my self defense of choice. Nice to know? Sure. But my side kick will serve me just as well outside as in class.

There are lots of Instructors out there, some in our own organization, who feel that because they have a 6th Dan or higher wrapped around their waist, that qualifies them as experts in certain disciplines or aspects of Tae Kwon Do. But the same applies whatever style you practice. Being a 6th Dan doesn't automatically qualify you to teach self defense, or history, or philosophy, or whatever. Our GM, based on his history and experiences in 40+ years of TKD, is qualified to teach many aspects of the art. Not because he is 9th Dan, but because he has the life experience to go with it. There are many people who have the rank but not the life experience or history. I've told people I am not the best person to teach realistic self defense, because I don't have that background. But I know people that do and refer people to them. So the fact that we come from a great organization is only part of it. Another part is how have you lived what you teach?

We don't have required self defense for testings. Black belts will work with each other on self defense, and we also include self defense in our periodic seminars to help students realize Tae Kwon Do is not just free fighting and forms-it has real world applications. I like to include at least one self defense application in every session in which I work with other black belts.

I had wanted to study a martial art forever, especially since I was an easy target in school. I finally broke my parents down, and my dad asked me if I wanted to learn a style that used more hands or more feet. I said feet, only because it sounded interesting. I had no idea either way. He signed me up for the Tae Kwon Do class at the local YMCA taught by this intense Korean guy who, it turned out, was a former national Korean free fighting champion. The rest is history. Just tested 5th Dan last year.

Same principle applies. I've seen Sanchin Ryu, Shorin Ryu, Isshin Ryu etc. I always end up leave thinking I just lost 1 1/2 hours of my life. Mind you, I will respect arts that deserve it. If I see a great Okinawan or Japanese karate class, I will take notice. I appreciate good technique and manners regardless of who teaches it. Unfortunately, my experience over the past 20+ years has not shown me these classes. And Tae Kwon Do classes are just as bad, if not worse. Either Olympic style or just bad.

When Lee founded his style, he tried to pass it off as a direct descendant of the Hwa Rang. That is until he was questioned on it and had to admit that his style had no relationship to the Hwa Rang or what they practiced. Many people still consider Lee's Hwa Rang Do simply a variation of Hapkido. However, it can be argued that whatever the root origin of a Korean style, the Tae Kyon influence, and the desire to make an art Korean, will always influence whatever Korean style you are talking about. If Tae Kwon Do can be thought to be Japanese-influenced striking and blocking with Korean kicking, the others can be thought of as jujitsu-aikijitsu with Korean kicking. Having said that, the Tae Kyon influence and desire to Koreanize an art has meant that Tae Kwon Do bears no resemblance to Japanese karate. Even in early photos, it is strkingly different in all aspects.

I used to visit other dojangs and schools in the past, but now I don't bother. I've seen too many crap schools to really merit doing it any more. For me, it tends to be a waste of time.

Hwa Rang Do did not exist as a martial art until the mid-latter 20th Century. The Hwa Rang did exist, but they studied several different arts-archery, horseback riding, weapons, Tae Kyon. There was never an art called Hwa Rang Do until Lee, a Hapkido student, called his that. All of the Korean styles have incorporated various degrees of Korean kicking. So the Tae Kyon influence applies not just to Tae Kwon Do.

Our color belts do the Palgue forms, then after Black Belt it is the WTF black belt forms. We don't have "probationary" or "decided" black belts. Either you are recommended or you are not. If it is felt you should wait six months to test, you wait six months and that's that.

Not surprisingly, given Korea's close proximity to China, and the fact that what was considered Korea centuries ago may well be Chinese territory now. Modern Tae Kwon Do, especially WTF Tae Kwon Do, is much more willing to admit the Chinese influence than the Japanese influence. Several of the WTF forms are Chinese characters. But would you be willing to acknowlege the influence of the culture that occupied your nation for 35 years and tried to exterminate its indigenous culture? Me neither. Not only that, but it is also not surprising that the kwans that acknowleged their Japanese backgrounds and tried to retain their Japanese character were given lesser roles in Korean Tae Kwon Do development.

At the close of the 19th Century, Tae Kyon was considered primarily a game, especially one practiced by children. However, I think this was a result of the Confucian culture that overtook Korea in the past 500 years, as well as the Japanese occupation. How do you make your art look harmless? You play it off as a kid's game. Adults did do it, and it was used to settle conflicts. Not very appealing in a so-called civilized society. From what I have read, young children are allowed to do the basics of Tae Kyon, much like basic Tae Kwon Do, but the advanced techniques are reserved for adults only. I also think that most of the original kwans, being basically Japanese karate, would have had no Tae Kyon influence. But some of the Kwans did, I think, incorporate indigenous Korean technique. Certainly some of the techniques I've seen my GM practice look very Tae Kyon-influenced.

Interesting and well-debated topic. I have seen videos of Tae Kyon students kicking, and much of what they do definitely appears in some schools of Tae Kwon Do. For example, one video that I have shows a Tae Kyon student doing: high front kick, jumping front kick, jumping back roundhouse, and what looks like a jumping wheel kick/axe kick technique. I personally don't believe Gen. Choi studied Tae Kyon as a youth. Conflicting reports (including his own) suggest otherwise. Also, the techniques of Tae Kyon do not appear in what are considered ITF-style Tae Kwon Do. Most of what he taught are Shotokan/Chung Do Kwan derived. I have read reports that Won Kuk Lee did, and one report that he taught Tae Kyon in his Chung Do Kwan curriculum. I don't know if Tae Kyon-derived kicking appeared in original Tae Kwon Do, but it definitely appeared later as Koreans sloughed off the Japanese influences and incorporated more Korean influenced techniques, especially kicking.

Back sidekick/jumping back sidekick. Not the ones I use all the time, but my personal favorites.

Our organization is Chung Do Kwan. Certified through Kukkiwon but still Chung Do Kwan.